Garzke & Dulin in their "Axis and Neutral Battleships in WW2" have RENOWN hitting GNEISENAU with two 15" shells - the one through the foremast and the second "damaged and silenced the after turret". What do German records have to say about this second shell?

and by interesting I´m not referring to the photo captured during shipyard trials in april 1938 but rather the message below.

That's what Hipper's captain heard too!

I think once the news flashed that Renown had caught up with "Scharnhorst" (or Gneisenau as the case may be), not knowing the circumstances, the immediate thought would be "their goose is cooked" since it also would be expected that Renown could match either of them in speed and outclass them in firepower.

Then there's the propaganda angle as well. How many times did the Germans "sink" the Ark Royal! Now the shoe is on the other foot!

Some time ago I bid and won a photo of H.M.S. Repulse with a NY press note on the back quoting a German report which claimed the Repulse had been badly damaged Oct. 16. 1939 in action with Günther Prien´s boat.